One of the things that William highly encouraged when asking me to join this blog, was for me to work on getting a couple of WSET awards. I had thought about taking Sommelier classes for some time so I decided to look into it. I was happy to learn that the Wine and Spirits Education Trust is more of a scholarly pursuit of wine and is fitting for someone who wants to write about, review, or simple know more about wine. I realized this was the ideal path for me and soon signed up.

I was so excited when my books came and quickly started reading through them so I would be knowledgeable in time for my class. The main textbook was divided in a way that made the subject matter very approachable. It started with basic, broad wine education and then later chapters went into more details about specific varietals and regions. This approach gave a good foundation before delving into the nitty gritty and gave a great foundation before heading into the classroom portion of the program.

When the day came, I have to admit, I was a little nervous. I love wine tasting and I’ve had so much fun writing articles for this blog but I’ve often second guessed whether I’m tasting the right notes or not and I was worried about having to share my opinions in front of a class full of people and a master taster.Anyone who’s met me may find this hard to believe, but I get really nervous about public speaking and usually have to practice what I’m going to say in my head so I don’t mess it up when I open my mouth. Knowing that we’d be going around the room sharing our tasting notes about the various wines we’d be trying made my heart beat so quickly. What if my turn left me having to describe a wine that I couldn’t pick out notes on? What if my nose was off? What’s the difference between gold and lemon colors? I decided I just had to go for it so when we got a wine that I felt comfortable with, I raised my hand to volunteer my notes… and the teacher said buy clomid without a prescription I nailed it. The rest of the weekend in class went that way. By the end, she was looking in my direction when there were no other volunteers. The experience was really great for my confidence. I love wine and writing and it felt so good to have my skill level in this field validated.

The weeks since have been spent studying for the test (which was last weekend). Although this level didn’t include any blind tastings, I made sure to taste a lot of wine as part of my preparation and I can’t wait to share those notes. I also started keeping track of wines that I wasn’t as familiar with so a trip to K&L may be in order soon so that I can remedy the situation. I also kept track of the wines I really loved and I’m looking to get those as well. The whole experience was just incredibly educational and one of the most enjoyable classroom settings I’ve experienced. Hopefully, I did well enough to pass the exam because I’m looking forward to taking the Level 3 course next year.